Electric fixture



NOV. 1, 1932. RUSSELL 1,886,306

ELECTRIC FIXTURE Filed Aug. 26, 1927 Patented Nov. 1, I932 MARK N.RUSSELL, or smousa,

NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO PASS &

SEYMOUR, me, or

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK ELECTRIC FIXTUREApplication filed August 26, 1927. Serial No. 215,721.

This invention relates to convenience outlets and more particularly toconvenience outlets for mounting in the canopies of electric lightfixtures.

It is a general object of the present invention to provide anovel andimproved form of convenience outlet.

More particularly it is an object of the invent-ion to provide aconvenience outlet arranged to have a minimum depth in order that thesame may be used in very shallow canopies.

A further object of the invention consists in the provision of a simpleblock of insulating material adapted to be secured to the rear face of acanopy, or a portion thereon which is formedof insulating material,provided with plug blade openings, said'block having recesses to receivecontact springs which are freely retained therein by the Walls of therecesses and the engaging face of the insulating portion of the canopy.

A still further object of the invention consists in the use of bowedcontacts whose major axes are arranged transversely to the line ofmovement of the plug blades and which contacts are not rigidly securedto the insulating parts of the convenience outlet.

Other and further objects and features of the invention will be morefully apparent from the-accompanying drawing and following specificationwherein is disclosed a single exemplary embodiment of the invention, it

being understood, however, that various 6 changes may be made thereinsuch as fall with the scopeof the appended claims without departing fromthe spirit of the inventidn. In said drawing:

Fig. 1 is the front elevation of a lighting bracket provided withthe'device of the present invention; g F ig. 2 is avertical sectionthrough the same on line, 2-2 ofFig. 1;

' Fig. 3 is a rear elevational view thereof;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken on line 41- 4.- of Fig. 1;

' Fig. 5' is a face view ofthe insulating contact receiving blockshowing the contacts in place; and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of one of the contacts and its terminalwire.

When attempting to mount convenience outlets in fixture canopies, forinstance such as those formed of porcelain or the like insulatingmaterial and intended for use in kitchens, laundries, baths and similarplaces, difliculty has been experienced, heretofore, where the canopieswere extremely shallow, since the well-known forms of convenienceoutlets are provided with spring contacts of considerable length andwhose major axes extend in the direction of movement of the plug blade-These contacts are fastened to suitable insulating supporting meansbelow the innermost end of the plug blades and thus require too great adepth for use in shallow canopies. The present invention contemplates anarrangement whichextremely simplifies the previous constructionsandwhich makes use of contact springs arranged transversely of the lineof movement of the plug blades and which are not fastened to theirinsulating support.

Referring to said drawing it will be seen that the invention has beenillustrated, for convenience, in connection with a wall bracket whichincludes the canopy 10, here shown as of circular configuration,provided near the periphery with the opening 11 through which the screwshell 12 of a suitable lamp receptacle 13, may be passed to receive ontoits external threads, the shade ring 14. The receptacle 13 fits againsta shoulder 15 and is thus held in place on the canopybetween thisshoulder and the shade ring.

A suitable aperture 16 in the center of the canopy allows for thepassage'of fastening means to secure the canopy to a wall or othersurface.

The canopy is preferably provided with a recess 17 in the back thereofin order to'provide room for wiring. The front wall 18 of the canopy isquite thick and in the present instance is formed of insulating materialalthough it is obviousth'at such isnot required, provided there is aninsulatin insert where the blades of the attachment p ug must passthrough the same. In the present instance the boss 19 on the face of thecanopy is integral therewith and is of suitable diameter to be in accordwith the diameter of an at tachment plug. It is provided with the usualplug blade openings 20 which pass from the front face into the recess 21opening into the back wall of the canopy. This recess is adapted tohouse and position the insulating block 22 which is shown to be ofsubstantially the same thickness as the depth of the recess and to be ofthe samenon-oircular configuration as the recess so that a singlefastening means, such as the screw 23 and nut 24,.

is sufficient to hold it in position with its front face 25 against thebottom wall-26 of the recess 21.

The block 22 is provided with two recesses 27 which open into the frontface 25 thereof. Each recess is arranged tobe in communication with oneof the openings 20 and has'at its bottom what'may be construed as anex-. tension of such opening. The distance from the front face of theboss 19 to the bottom of these extensions 28 is at least as great as thelength of theblade of a normal attachment plug. The major portion of therecess 27 is considerablywider than the thickness of a plug blade andthe sides thereof are parallel. At one end of the recess is a. diagonalwall 29 on the inner side and at the opposite end both sides of therecess flare as shownat 30. Adjacent these flaring walls is the flat endwall 31.

Arranged within each recess and freely contained therein is a springcontact member 32 formed of a strip of conducting. material of a normalwidth slightly less than the main depth of the recess 27. The contact isbowed to a convex form by bending transverse to its longitudinal axis.This arrangement allows the ends 33 and 34c to lie near to the outerwall of the recess 27 while the central portion 35 of the contact isbowed away from the wall and lies directly beneath the center of theopening 20. A guide lug 36 extends from the center of the upper edge ofthe contact and is bent so that its outer end lies substantially in thesame plane as the ends 33 and 34 of the contact. Itwill be seen fromFigure 4 that this guide lug lies in an enlargement 37 of the opening 20and serves to guide the plug blade onto the convex face of the spring tocause the same to be flattened and thus exert pressure against the sideface of the blade. The narrow end of the recess caused by the diagonalwall 29 serves to more readily position the contact spring and to holdthe punched-up portion 40 thereof out of engagement with the oppositewall of the recess. Thisportion 40 by engagement with the-wall of a holein the plug blade prevents its accidental removal as is well known.

Adjacent theend'34: of the spring it is bent at a right angle totheplane of the two ends to form the portion ll which its in the widenedend of the recess. To this wing'por of the recess 27 to receive thiswasher must be provided as clearly shown in Figure 5. Tlns' washer holdsthe contact as shown in Fig. 5.

Each, terminal or conductor wire passes through a groove 45 in the endof the block 22 and passes through the channel 46 into the recess 17 inthe back of the canopy. groove 45 is preferably slightly lessin widththan the normal diameter of the insulating covering on the conductorwire so that a tightfit for this wire is provided. This serves to holdthe conductor wireand the contact in position in the block forconvenience in assembling the same in the canopy.

\Vhen the block is assembled in the recess in the canopy the upper edgeof the contact is preferably just outof engagement with the ottom wallof the recess in the canopy so that the contact is free to be bent bythe plug blade and it may be said to be freely mounted within the recesstransversely to the line of movement of the plug blade thus reducingvery materially the depth of the whole convenience outlet. The contactmember is partly positioned in the recess by is configurationand partlyby the terminal wire secured thereto. 7

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent is: j I

1. In a convenience outlet, the combination with a fixed supportingmeans having plug blade openings, of an insulating block secured to saidsupporting means and having a recess for and incommunication with. eachopening and a spring contact loosely ar ranged and fully housed in eachrecess with its longitudinal axis extending at right angles to the lineof movement of a plug blade and with its greatest width less than thedistance a plug blade extends into said recess.

2. In a convenienceoutlet in combination an-insulating support having aplug blade opening, a block of insulating materialhaving an elongatedrecess therein in communication with said opening, a'bowed contactloosely 'arranged'in said recess and having its ends adapted to bepressed against a side wall thereof and its center beneath said openingwith the convex side positioned to engage said blade. j I

3. In a convenience outlet in combination an insulating support having aplug blade opening therethru, a block of insulating material having anelongated recess in one face thereofxadapted to communicate with saidopening when said block is secured to said The support, a bowed contactloosely arranged in said recess With its ends adapted to be pressedagainst a side wall thereof, a wing on one end of said contact abuttinganend Wall of said recess and 'a conductor wire securled to said wingand passing thru said end wa l.

4. In a wall bracket, in combination, a canopy of insulating materialhaving a recess in the inner wall thereof, a block of insulatingmaterial in said recess having contact receiving recesses therein andcontacts retained entirely in said recesses by engagement with thebottom Wall of said canopy recess.

5. In a wall bracket, in combination, a canopy of insulating materialhaving a depression in the inner wall thereof connected to the outerwall by plug blade openings, a block of insulating material received insaid depression and positioned by the walls thereof, recesses in thefront face of said block, a contact in each recess beneath an opening,each contact being freely mounted in its recess and retained in positionby the bottom wall of said depression, each contact being arrangedtransversely to the line of movement of the plug blade and being of lesswidth in that direction than the length of plug blade normally extendinginto the contact recess.

6. As an article of manufacture, in combination, an integral contactspring for a convenience outlet formed from an elongated strip of metalhaving its center portion bowed out of the plane of the ends, a guidelug extending from substantially the center of one of the long sides ofthe strip and bent slightly toward the plane of the end portions, a Wingat one end of the said strip at substantially right angles to saidplane, and an insulated conductor Wire soldered to the wing andextending away from the contact at substantially a right angle to theface of said wing.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature.

MARK N. RUSSELL.

